Using a Dehydrator to Make Shelf Stable Ground Beef

Hey Everyone! Thank you for all of the wonderful feedback on my Youtube Dehydrating videos! I’ve made another one for you this week on how I dehydrate ground beef in order to save money and space in my freezer! Dehydrated ground beef is shelf stable and rehydrates like a charm (I can’t tell the difference!).

Be sure and watch until the end to see what my ground beef looks like once it is rehydrated! Links to products I use in the video are below.

Please note: I have heard from some of you that you are having trouble watching the videos due to them starting and stopping constantly. This is due to the strength of your internet signal. Youtube videos are best watched over a high speed internet connection if at all possible. If you can’t watch them, no sweat! I still have over 800 recipes on SouthernPlate.com with step by step photos, and many more to come! The videos are just a little bonus content 🙂

Comments

We’re still considering taking the plunge and purchasing a dehydrator. In your latest video on drying ground beef, could you do onions at the same time? Thanks for another great and informative video! P.S. I noticed we have the same loaf pan from your Italian Meatloaf recipe!

Hi Christy, I’m new to your website, but have learned so much from you! I LOVE your dehydrator series and am looking forward to the next one! Let me say you really outdid yourself on the ground beef one! I told my hubs ” check this out! This is the best thing since shredded cheese! :)” He got a good laugh, you gotta love him!! I have a dehydrator like yours only smaller. We bought it 10 years ago to make our own venison jerky. I do have a question. If i want a lb. of meat how much dehydrated meat do i use? Can i do this with sausage? How about venison? My hubs a big hunter and tho i prefer beef i have found ways to like the venison too. Keep up the great work and amazing recipes! God bless! Joy

Thanks, Christy for that information! I have a Foodsaver and need to get the jar attachments. I have some oxygen absorber packets and wonder if they would do the trick until I get some jar lid attachments? I HATE I missed you in Asheville last week! We are only about 90 miles away but everyone in my house has been sick with the cold/sinus crud and I couldn’t make it. Thanks for all of your inspiration!

I love my Excalibur dehydrator!!! Mostly I use it to make chicken jerky for my dogs. LOL After so many dogs got sick from jerky from China I thought the investment in the dehydrator was well worth the money. I was not aware you did dehydrating recipes. I know now and will check all the recipes.

I put parchment paper in the bottom of my Excalibur to catch the drips!

I can’t wait to try this with ground beef. I already dehydrated all of my frozen vegetables & leftover celery and I love it. I have even already used some of it. I and my freezer love this. I also have to do the rice too. Thank you so much Christy.
My only problem is that I have one of the older round dehydrators and it holds so much less than yours. But, it still works!

Dear Christy,
I’ve used my dehydrator more in the last two weeks than I have in the two years I’ve had it!!!
I’ve done your vegetables, your rice and a HUGE can of hominy. We like hominy in soup and this makes it so convenient. It reconstitutes in the soup and is so good.
Will be doing the ground beef next.
Thanks so much
JIll

I have a question, how do you evacuate the air from the Mason jars? do you process them the way one would do for regular canning? I have a food vacuum unit but have no purchased any jars to go with it. I am loving this idea, would rather have food in jars than in the freezer!!!

Thanks for the dehydrating videos. I am researching putting meals together in a vaccum bag for better storage. Soups, stews, stroganoff, anything I can find. Do you have recipes for these? There is a wealth of info out there, but we really trust you because we feel we know you.

I bought one of the Excalibur 9 tray dehydrator, Love it! I am dehydrating pork and chicken today. Is it best to put the meats into jars or sealed bags? The beef jerky I did is already gone….LOL Thank you and see you tomorrow.

Christy thanks so much for the ideas on dehydrating. I have an excalibur but haven’t used it yet – chicken I guess – cluck cluck – anyway could you do a visdeo on fruits especially peaches so we can learn to make you mothers or grandmothers peach fried pies!! Thanks CJ

Love this – ground beef takes up so much room in my freezers! I have that same dehydrator and love it! I mostly use it for vegetables, especially onions – I can’t eat onions any other way and dried onions are so expensive compared to growing my own, slicing on my V-slicer, separating all the rings (I can usually get 3 large onions on the 9 trays) and drying outside for 24 hours (if you really enjoy the smell of onions, dry them in the house). Definitely need to know how to evacuate the air from the canning jars!!

I can to Southern Plate your the good food memories (and recipes to re-create them). But now I am picking up money saving tips too! Thanks. I do have one question, I know you love bacon grease, but where is the lard? Lard is so easy to render and fried food are actually less greasy when fried in it- plus my butcher gives me the fat for free!

Hi Christy,
I have to tell you that, because of your video on dehydrating frozen vegies, I bought a dehydrator just like yours. I LOVE IT!!!! I’ve made so many fun and delicious things with it. I get cases of apples thru our food coop and they are even better dried than fresh. I also use the peelings and cores to make applesauce which dehydrates into fabulous fruit leather. I’ve made beef and chicken jerky, but I didn’t think of dehydrating ground beef. What a great idea.

Just a note…I dehydrated some frozen corn today. I thought I’d try flavoring it first. I used several different seasonings to see what we like best. My favorite is bar b que sauce. What a wonderful snack. You are so right…dehydrated corn is delicious…with or without seasoning.

Thank you so much for all your wonderful ideas, recipes and videos. I am a faithful follower of your site and look forward to what’s next.

I have been watching your videos on dehydrating veggies, rice and ground meat, and tonight I just had to buy a excalibur !!! Can’t wait to receive it and start. I quess the food saver will be next. LOL Thanks for all your good information.

after watching your videos on dehydrating vegetables, I bought an Excalibur, and I am trying beef jerky, my husband said that had to be the first thing. Enjoy your videos and will make all of the food items, and look forward to more ideas !! Thanks

I am 72 years old and because of my youngest daughter (who wants to be self sufficient) I am getting into dehydrating, big-time gardening, chickens and next milk goats. What fun! I wish you would put your videos in recipe form so they can be printed. If you have, I apologize. I am computer illiterate. Thanks for all the preparedness ideas and recipes. I feel this is something that is needed and dehydrating is an excellent alternative to freezing in case the electricity is down. Again, if the recipes can be printed I apologize. Please continue the ideas.

I also am going the self sufficient way with my daughter and relearning so much my parents learned from my grandparents in Wisconsin. I am in FL now and have a whole new adventure with self suffiency in a totally different climate. I am so happy to have discovered southern plate.com. This is our first year trying to raise enough food here to be self sufficient.

Hi and thanks for the wonderful videos! Just a quick question as I don’t have a vacuum sealer would the beef be ok in a jar with just a oxygen absorber pad? I really can’t wait to give dehydrating mince a go 🙂